Last month, church blessings were given to same-sex marriages in a document called Fiducia Supplicans (Supplicating Trust).
Many African priests rejected the move by the pope and the document. In many African countries, same-sex marriages are criminalised, even though there are communities of LGBTQ+ people.
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In Nigeria, for example, people have been arrested for what the police suspected to be a wedding between homosexuals or even just a group of men partying without any women in their mix.
The Pope told the Italian newspaper that to Africans, “homosexuality is something ‘bad’ from a cultural point of view; they don’t tolerate it”.
“But in general, I trust that gradually everyone will be reassured by the spirit of the ‘Fiducia Supplicans’ declaration by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith: it aims to include, not divide,” the pope said.
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Francis stated that he is not concerned about the possibility of conservatives leaving the Catholic Church as a result of his reforms, claiming that discussion of a split is always driven by “small groups. We must leave them to it, move on, and look forward,” he said.
The writer of this article believes that the Catholic Church in Africa is too orthodox to agree to same-sex relations, especially when it’s against the law of the land, considering how homophobic Africa is and especially when lesser sins like divorce is still frowned upon.
Despite the reassurance from the Pope, one wonders what will become of such a major ideological issue in the Catholic Church, known for its uniformity.
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